Silly Chili Triathlon Results - 2011

For the fourth year in a row, this triathlon turned out to have a small but enthusiastic run and swim following, and a loud, raucous and passionate turnout for leg 3, the chili cook-off.

Leg 1 - The Run

Hardcore regulars Kim, Sibylle, Susan and myself showed up at the Griffin Gym in North Vancouver.  We were joined by Monika from Vancouver who looked a bit bewildered.  "I was expecting a throng of triathletes with chili bowls", she confessed as we jogged to the start.  It was cool, gray and threatening to rain at any minute, but actually quite pleasant for running.

For those not familiar with the Mosquito Creek trail, it's like a country road:  rock and gravel surface, wide enough for a car, adjacent to a wide creek and decidedly uphill to
the turnaround.  For those not familiar with Club Fat Ass events, whining, in whatever form, is not allowed.  Of course, the whining started as soon as the trail got a bit steeper and it started to spit with rain...  

Tradition calls for each participant to touch the sign in front of the yellow bridge, run to the Mount Royal bridge and touch it, then retrace their steps back down the trail.  Repeat as many times as possible in an hour.  

The skies opened up with thunder and a brief downpour as we made our way back to the gym.  This was followed by a brief, but intense bout of hail, then glorious sunshine for the swim leg.

1 lap Sibylle
2 laps Susan (note: she did the long course)
3 laps Monika, Kim, Jackson


Leg 2 - The Swim

This leg of the triathlon is somewhat open to interpretation, as it does not absolutely require that one swim laps.  Most of the participants went directly into the hot tub.  Monika and Jackson actually did do a few laps of "tri swim", which is a form of full-contact swim that involves crawling-over, rolling over or otherwise trying to take-out the other person in the lane.  A mentally handicapped swimmer with whom we shared the lane was delighted with the concept.  John Machray appeared in the hot tub and was overheard trying to convince Susan to run 100-milers.  They spent the better part of an hour in the tub, so the “Dry as a Prune” award goes to the both of them this year.

Susan, Monika, John and Jackson


Leg 3 - The Chili Cook-off

This year we had nine contestants in the cook-off including two past champions (Wendy and Reagan).  The iron chefs and their contributions this year were:

1. Sweet Kick  Sibylle Tinsel (ground beef with chocolate
and spices)
2. Satan's Ice Cream Wendy Montgomery (bold and beefy)
3. East Van Supreme Reagan, Isaac and & Carter White (veggies, beans and spices)
4. Wet Running Shoe Karl and Lorraine (veggie delight)
5. Red Racer Gabi & Graham Kwan (kid friendly - favorite of the Cypress kid ski racers)
6. Bagger's Two Craig Moore & Vicky Forsyth - full of beanie goodness
7. All Gobbled Up Patricia, Hanna & David Jensen (turkey chili with all the trimmings)
8. Eastern Safari Chili Mebs Tejpar (a spicy meat chili with a taste of Africa from someone who lived there)
9. Chili Con Valley Glenn, Manon and Gabrielle Pace (all-meat with
a bit of afterburn)


After being provided with a scorecard and a bowl, everyone  was free to sample chilies at their own pace.  While a bit subjective and somewhat depending on the participant, the finish line was determined to be the point at which the participant uttered, "I'm stuffed!"  Those who started with larger bowls and cleansed their palates with cornbread muffins or soft tortillas where first to reach the finish line.  Several participants had a second wind and returned for a bake-off of their favorite chilis.

When the last bowl was laid to rest on the table, the voting started.  This is where things became a bit controversial...

To determine the most popular chili, we had 2 rounds of a show of hands. Round one narrowed the field to 5 contestants.  The second round of voting was limited to the winners of round 1.  The more statistically inclined in the room pointed out numerous voting irregularities with this method.  (sidenote:  Sue is a self-diagnosed anal-retentive and Mebs is the president of a software company that develops grading rubrics.  Think of how you two could improve the scoring if you had a year to collaborate on it! )  It was also a very, very close vote.  In the end, however, the Chili Con Valley from La Famille Pace prevailed.

Many thanks to the following contestants and participants for all you did to make this a wonderful evening:

Wendy Montgomery, Reagan, Isaac and Carter White, Karl and Lorraine Jensen, Gabi and Graham Kwan, Craig Moore and Vicky Forsyth, Kim Taylor, Mebs Tejpar,
Glenn, Manon and Gabrielle Pace, Patricia, David and Hannah Jensen, Monika Kreidemann, Susan Hui, John Machray, Sibylle Tinsel and Ean Jackson.

Ean Jackson and Sibylle Tinsel
Hosts of the Silly Chili Triathlon


PS  I will post the recipes of all chefs who share them with me 

PPS Registration is now up for the 2012 event.  Sign up now to avoid disappointment: www.clubfatass.com/events/flash-silly-chili-triathlon/2012